Conversion Is the Way

By davidswanson - Posted on 03 December 2010

While economists have shown[1] that investing our public dollars in the military hurts our economy, because investing in other industries would produce more jobs, the fact remains that millions of Americans who have jobs have them through the military and the privatized war machine. How do we keep those people at work while employing more people for the same investment, and while avoiding all the other negative consequences brought on by the war economy?

The answer does not need to be invented any more than the wheel does. It needs to be resuscitated and legislated. Here's a handy piece of legislation[2] from the 102nd Congress (1991-1992), legislation introduced in one form or another for decades, legislation that nearly passed in 1963, but legislation that has yet to be enacted and is on its way to being forgotten even as we need it more desperately each year. Here is the full text, followed by resources[3] that could help make it a reality. The misleading term "defense" should be changed throughout to the more accurate term "military" to facilitate passage.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SHORT TITLE SECTION 1. This Act may be cited as the `Defense Economic Adjustment Act'.

declaration of purpose and policy

SEC. 2. (a) The Congress finds and declares that during the past three decades the United States has made heavy economic, scientific, and technical commitments for defense; that these commitments led to the development of specialized skills and business practices not directly applicable in the civilian sector of the economy; that as these commitments are modified to take account of changing requirements for national security and domestic needs, careful preparation is necessary if serious economic dislocations are to be avoided; and that the economic ability of the Nation and of management, labor, and capital to adjust to changing national security needs is consistent with the general welfare of the United States.

(b) It is the purpose of this Act to provide the means through which the United States can promote orderly economic adjustment which will (1) minimize the dislocation of workers, communities, and industries, (2) assure that such dislocations do not compound recessionary trends, and (3) encourage conversion of technologies and managerial and worker skills developed in defense production to projects which serve the civilian sector.

SEC. 101. (a) There is established in the Executive Office of the President the Defense Economic Adjustment Council which shall be composed of--

(1) the Secretary of Commerce;

(2) the Secretary of Labor;

(3) the Secretary of Health and Human Services;

(4) the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development;

(5) the Secretary of Transportation;

(6) the Secretary of Defense;

(7) the Secretary of Energy;

(8) the Director of the Office of Management and Budget;

(9) the Administrator of the General Services Administration;

(10) the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers;

(11) six representatives of the business-management community who represent nondefense business to be appointed by the President; and

(12) six representatives of labor union organizations to be appointed by the President.

(b) The Secretaries of Commerce and Labor shall be Cochairmen of the Council, shall preside over meetings of the Council, and shall designate a member of the Council to preside in the absence of the Chairman.

(c)(1) An Office of Economic Adjustment shall be established within the Executive Office of the President to provide necessary staff support for the Council. The Office shall be headed by a Director who shall be appointed by the President and who shall be compensated at the rate provided for grade 18 of the General Schedule under section 5332 of title 5, United States Code.

(2) At the request of the Council, the staff and any task force established by the Council shall carry out such duties as the Council may prescribe.

(3) The Council may appoint and fix the compensation of such personnel as it deems advisable. The Council may procure temporary and intermittent services to the same extent as authorized by section 3109 of title 5, United States Code.

(4) The Council is authorized to secure directly from any executive department, agency, or other instrumentality of the Government, information, suggestions, estimates, and statistics to carry out this Act, and each such entity shall furnish such information, suggestions, estimates, and statistics directly to the Council upon request made by the Chairman.

(5) The members of such staff and any task force established by the Council may include marketing specialists, production engineers, plant layout experts, and urban planning experts.

(d)(1) Members of the Council who are officers or employees of the Government shall receive no additional compensation by virtue of membership on the Council.

(2) Members appointed to the Council who are not officers or employees of the Government shall receive compensation at the rate of not to exceed $135 per diem when engaged in the performance of duties of the Council.

(3) While away from their homes or regular places of business in the performance of services for the Council, all members of the Council shall be allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, in the same manner as persons employed intermittently in the Government service are allowed expenses under section 5703 of title 5, United States Code.

duties

SEC. 102. (a) The Council shall--

(1) disseminate information furnished by the Secretary of Defense under subsection (b) to the appropriate Federal, State, and local agencies or authorities and alternative use committees as soon as the proposed or pending change described in such notice is known;

(2) encourage the preparation of concrete plans for non-defense-related public projects addressing vital areas of national concern (such as transportation, housing, education, health care, environmental protection, and renewable energy resources) by the various civilian agencies of the Government, as well as by State and local governments;

(3) solicit, direct, and coordinate concrete plans for non-defense-related public projects addressing vital areas of national interest, taking State and local concerns into account;

(5) monitor existing job services information banks in the Department of Labor and in State agencies to serve as a resource on civilian job information for workers displaced from defense-related employment as a result of shifting or reduced defense-related expenditure;

(6) determine criteria for eligibility for assistance and rule on eligibility appeals pursuant to this Act;

(7) prepare and distribute a Conversion Guidelines Handbook pursuant to section 103 of this Act;

(8) make full use of the provisions of section 15(d) of the Small Business Act; and

(9) perform such other duties as are imposed upon the Council by this Act.

(b)(1) The Secretary of Defense shall notify the Council one year in advance of a pending or proposed change in defense spending (or as soon as possible prior to such proposed change) that would affect employment in the defense industry, including reduction, technical changes, or elimination of a program by Congress, the Secretary of Defense, the Office of Management and Budget, or the President; the termination or slowdown of a research and development or procurement contract; and the proposal to close a military base.

(2) The Secretary of Defense shall furnish the Council with projected future defense spending levels and contract progress reports.

conversion guidelines handbook

SEC. 103. (a) The Council shall prepare and distribute a Conversion Guidelines Handbook which shall--

(1) include an explanation of the basic issues involved in the retraining, reorientation, and reorganization of personnel (managerial, technical, administrative, and production), trade union rights and collective bargaining contracts, and the redirection of physical plants for efficient, non-defense-related productive activity;

(2) outline the basic requirements of programs for professional retraining of managerial personnel in order to reorient them to the management of non-defenserelated enterprise;

(3) outline the basic requirements for a program of professional retraining of technical personnel in order to effectively reorient them to the prevailing conditions of research, product design, and production operations within non-defense-related facilities;

(4) outline the basic requirements for the length and nature of occupational retraining for production workers and junior level administrative employees;

(6) prepare directories, by geographic region and area of specialization, of organizations and individual consultants in fields such as marketing, facilities design, organization, production engineering, and engineering economy whose major professional experience has been in non-defense-related activity, and furnish such lists to local alternative use committees upon their request;

(7) provide a checklist of critical points requiring attention at each stage of the conversion process;

(8) contain an annotated bibliography of conversion related works; and

(9) be revised, as necessary, every two years.

rules

SEC. 104. The Defense Economic Adjustment Council shall promulgate such regulations as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act.

TITLE II--COMMUNITY ECONOMIC ADJUSTMENT PLANNING

eligibility

SEC. 201. (a) Each community which is substantially and seriously affected by reduction or elimination of Government defense facilities or curtailment or conclusion of defense contracts shall be eligible for Federal assistance for planning for economic adjustment to avoid substantial dislocations and for economic adjustment assistance should such dislocation occur. The Council shall make available to alternative use committees on a regular basis information on economic development programs of any Federal department, agency, or other instrumentality which provide funds which may be used for such planning. The Council shall report at least annually to the Congress on any such economic development program which make an inadequate portion of its funds available for such planning.

(b) The Council shall develop criteria for eligibility for planning assistance. To the fullest extent practicable, the Council shall utilize data and reports available from other departments, agencies, or instrumentalities of the Government for statistical and other information required to develop the criteria. The criteria shall insure that assistance is directed to those communities which are most vulnerable economically to reductions in defense expenditures.

(c) The Council shall publish semiannually listings of communities currently eligible, or which the Council determines (on the basis of information provided under section 102(b)(1)) is likely to be eligible, for such assistance. Communities not included may petition the Council for inclusion on the list. The Council shall make such determination within one month of receipt of the petition.

excess property provision

SEC. 202. (a) Any capital property or facilities declared excess by a defense agency in conjunction with a Government-owned facility reduction or closure shall be appraised for purposes of resale to the affected community. The defense agency shall take into account the cost of modernization and of improving abandoned facilities up to minimum safety and environmental standards in determining a fair price for the facility.

(b) In fixing the sale or lease value of any property to be disposed of under subsection (a), the defense agency shall take into consideration any benefit which has accrued or may accrue to the United States from the use of such property by the community involved. Whenever there is a dispute as to the sale or lease value, the defense agency shall submit such a dispute to the Defense Economic Adjustment Council for resolution.

TITLE III--ALTERNATIVE USE COMMITTEES

establishment

SEC. 301. (a) There shall be established at every defense facility employing at least one hundred persons an alternative use committee, composed of not less than eight members, with equal representation of the facility's management and labor (including representatives of union bargaining units and democratically elected representatives of unorganized workers). The committee shall undertake economic conversion planning and preparation for the employment of the personnel and utilization of the facilities in the event of a reduction or elimination of any defense facility or the curtailment, conclusion, or disapproval of any defense contract.

(b) In the case of a defense facility that is a Government military installation, an alternative use committee shall be established composed of not less than eight members, with equal representation of the base management (as designated by the base commander) and the civilian employees of the installation (including representatives of union bargaining units and democratically elected representatives of unorganized civilians).

(c) In the case of a defense facility that is not a governmental military installation, and of any defense contractor subject to subsection (a), the alternative use committee shall be established in accordance with the provisions of this section notwithstanding the lack of any specific requirement for such a committee in the defense contracts of such facility.

(d) The chief executive officer of any unit of general local government within which the defense facility is located may appoint nonvoting representatives of the local community, not including any individuals employed at the facility, to participate in activities of the alternative use committees in an advisory capacity. The number of such representatives shall not exceed a number equal to one-half the total number of voting representatives on the committee.

(e) The representatives of the unorganized civilian workers on any alternative use committee shall not be discriminated against in any manner for their participation in the committee.

(f) Funds for performing the planning and reporting requirements imposed by this title, including market research, independent studies, and the employment of specialized personnel, shall be paid from funds derived from the defense contract or military base operating expenses. Office space shall be provided to the alternative use committee by the management of the facility without charge.

functions of the alternative use committees

SEC. 302. (a) The alternative use committees shall--

(1) evaluate the assets of the defense facility and the resources and requirements of the local community in terms of physical property, manpower skills and expertise, accessibility, environment, and economic needs;

(2) develop and review at least once every two years detailed plans for the conversion of the facility to efficient, non-defense-related productive activity to be carried out in the event the facility is affected by a Government decision to reduce, modify, or close the facility, terminate any defense contracts, or disapprove a license to sell or export defense materials to nongovernmental parties;

(3) provide occupational retraining and reemployment counseling services, or ensure that such retraining and services are provided by other Federal, State, or local agencies, for all employees to be displaced by the implementation of a conversion plan or closing of the facility as soon as the date of commencement of the implementation of that plan or the permanent closing of that facility is known as provided for in section 102(a)(1);

(4) dissolve itself and return all assets to the control of the management of the facility immediately upon final completion of the conversion.

administrative provisions

SEC. 303. (a) The alternative use committees may hire staff personnel as well as any specialists it may determine necessary.

(b) The alternative use committees are authorized to obtain a complete and detailed inventory of all land, building, capital equipment, and other equipment, including its condition, and are authorized to obtain information of a general nature regarding the occupations and skills of civilian employees, and information concerning existing collective-bargaining contracts. Any defense agency or contractor and any department, agency, or other instrumentality of the Government shall provide any such inventory or information upon request from an alternative use committee.

conversion plans

SEC. 304. (a) The conversion plans shall--

(1) be so designed as to maximize the extent to which the personnel required for the efficient operation of the converted facility can be drawn from personnel with the types and levels of skill approximating skill levels and types possessed by civilian personnel employed at the defense facility prior to its conversion;

(2) specify the numbers of civilian personnel, by type and level of skill, employed at the facility prior to conversion, whose continued employment is not consistent with the efficient operation of the non-defense-related converted facility;

(3) specify the numbers of positions, by level and type of skill, if any, that will be needed at the converted facility because personnel employed at the preconverted facility do not possess the levels or types of skills required;

(4) indicate in detail what new plant and equipment and modifications to existing plant and equipment are required for the converted facility;

(5) include an estimate of financing requirements and a financial plan for the conversion; and

(6) provide for completion of the entire conversion process within a period not to exceed two years.

(b) No plan shall be approved by an alternative use committee unless the plan provides for extension of wage, labor contract provisions, and other benefits to workers at a defense facility until conversion to non-defense-related operations is completed.

penalties

SEC. 305. Each contractor which fails to submit an alternative use plan or refuses or fails to carry out the provisions of a plan approved by the Council shall lose eligibility for future defense contracts for a period of three years, lose contract termination payments, and lose eligibility for tax credits.

TITLE IV--ECONOMIC ADJUSTMENT ASSISTANCE FOR WORKERS

certification

SEC. 401. (a) All displacements affecting workers employed by a defense contractor attributable, in whole or in part, to a reduction of the volume of defense work in such facility shall, upon certification by the local alternative use committees, be reported by the management of the firm or Government facility to the Defense Economic Adjustment Council and the State employment office acting as agent for the administration of the employees benefit program under this title.

(b) Any worker who loses employment with a defense contractor within the six months preceding a reduction of the volume of defense work of such contractor shall, for purposes of subsection (a), be deemed to be a displacement attributable to that reduction.

(c) Any worker employed by a defense facility not required to have alternative use committees as provided in section 301(a) shall be eligible for benefits in accordance with regulations prescribed by the Council.

entitlement to benefits

SEC. 402. (a) Any worker certified pursuant to section 401 of this Act as eligible for adjustment benefits by reason of such worker's displacement from a defense contractor shall be entitled, for the two-year period following displacement, to whichever of the following benefits are applicable:

(1) Compensation, on a weekly basis, sufficient, when added to any benefits which such worker receives or is entitled to receive for such weekly period under any Federal or State unemployment compensation program (or any plan of such worker's employer providing for such benefits) by reason of such worker displacement, and any earnings during such weekly period from other employment, to maintain an income at a level equal to 90 per centum of the first $20,000 per year and 50 per centum of the next $5,000 in excess of $20,000 for that year, of that worker's regular annual wages (based on a forty-hour workweek, or, in the event a defense contractor has a regular workweek payable at straight-time wage rates other than forty hours, for such regular workweek) prior to that worker's displacement.

(2) Vested pension credit under any applicable pension plan maintained by the defense contractor from which such worker was displaced, for the period of that worker's employment with such facility, and the two-year period following that worker's displacement, during which two-year period, for the purpose of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.) and the corresponding provisions of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to a qualified plan) such worker shall be treated as if such worker were employed by such contractor on the same basis as such worker was employed on the day preceding such worker's displacement; except that pension credit during such two-year period shall be reduced to the extent of vested pension credit earned with another employer during such two-year period.

(3) Maintenance of any hospital, surgical, medical, disability, life (and other survivor) insurance coverage which such individual (including members of such individual's family) had by reason of employment by a defense contractor prior to such displacement; except that if such worker so displaced is otherwise employed during such two-year period, such worker shall be entitled to receive benefits under this paragraph to the extent necessary to provide such worker with the same protection described in this paragraph as such worker (including family members) would have had if such worker had not been displaced.

(4)(A) Retraining for civilian work providing pay and status comparable to the employment from which such worker was displaced which is approved by the Secretary of Labor or, in the case of a worker in a State which has entered into a contract with the Council pursuant to section 403 of this Act, by the State agency.

(B) Workers shall be eligible for a job search allowance under the same terms, conditions, and amounts as provided in section 237 of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2297).

(5) Reimbursement for reasonable relocation expenses as specified in regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Labor incurred by such worker in moving to another location in order to take advantage of a non-defense-related employment opportunity to which such worker is referred, or which is determined to be suitable, by the Secretary of Labor or, in the case of a State which has entered into a contract with the Council pursuant to section 403 of this Act, by the State agency.

(b) All managerial and technical employees who have spent more than 50 per centum of the ten years preceding implementation of the conversion plan working in defense-related industry or at military bases must participate in or have completed a program of professional retraining meeting the requirements specified in the Conversion Guidelines Handbook of the Defense Economic Adjustment Council in order to be eligible for the special financial assistance, relocation aid, and special job information services provided by this Act. All other employees may elect to enter such a program.

state agreements

SEC. 403. (a) The Council shall, on behalf of the United States, enter into an agreement with a State, or with any agency administering the unemployment compensation law of any State approved by the Secretary of Labor under section 3304 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, which--

(1) as agent of the Council, shall upon certification and other determinations required in section 401 of this Act, make such payments and provide such benefits as are authorized by section 402 of this Act, on the basis provided for in this Act, and shall otherwise cooperate with the Council and other State agencies in carrying out the provisions of this Act; and

(2) shall be reimbursed for all benefits paid pursuant to such agreement and all administrative and operational costs incurred in carrying out such agreement.

(b)(1) There shall be paid to each State agency which has an agreement under this section, either in advance or by way of reimbursement, as may be determined by the Council, such sum as the Council estimates the agency will be entitled to receive under such agreement for each calendar month, reduced or increased, as the case may be, by any sum by which the Council finds that its estimates for any prior calendar month were greater or less than amounts which should have been paid to the agency. Such estimates may be made upon the basis of statistical sampling, or other method as agreed upon by the Council and the State agency.

(2) The Council shall from time to time certify to the Secretary of the Treasury for payment to each State agency which has an agreement under this section sums payable to such agency under paragraph (1) of this subsection. The Secretary of the Treasury, prior to audit or settlement by the General Accounting Office, shall make payments to the agency, in accordance with such certification, from the fund.

(3) All money paid a State agency under any such agreement shall be used solely for the purposes for which it is paid; and any money so paid which is not used for such purposes shall be returned, at the time specified in such agreement, to the Treasury.

(c) In any case involving a worker entitled to benefits under section 402 who is in a State with respect to which there is no agreement pursuant to this section, the Secretary of Labor shall, under regulations prescribed by the Secretary, administer such benefits on behalf of such worker. The Secretary of Labor, in administering such benefits, shall, from time to time, certify to the Secretary of the Treasury for payment to such worker the amounts of such benefits to which such worker and the Secretary of the Treasury shall make payments to such worker, in accordance with such certification, from the fund.

limitation on benefits

SEC. 404. In no case shall any displaced worker be eligible for benefits under section 402(a) of this Act unless such worker agrees (1) to maintain, on a current basis, during the period of his displacement, an active registration with the Secretary of Labor or an appropriate State employment agency, as the case may be, and (2) to accept any employment determined by the Secretary of Labor or agency, as the case may be, to be of the same skill or work of a similar nature, at the same pay as such worker was receiving before such worker was displaced. No such benefits shall be paid under this Act to any worker who fails to maintain such registration or to accept such employment.

treatment of unemployment compensation

SEC. 405. In no case shall any adjustment benefits paid pursuant to this Act be taken into consideration in determining eligibility for, or the amount of, unemployment compensation under any Federal or State unemployment compensation law.

termination of benefits

SEC. 406. Adjustment benefits shall terminate when a worker eligible for benefits obtains employment providing 90 per centum of the first $20,000 per year and 50 per centum of the next $5,000 in excess of $20,000 for that year of that worker's previous wages, or two years after displacement, whichever occurs sooner.

TITLE V--ECONOMIC ADJUSTMENT FUND

fund established

SEC. 501. There is hereby established in the Treasury of the United States a trust fund to be known as the Workers Economic Adjustment Reserve Trust Fund.

deposits into the fund

SEC. 502. (a)(1) The Federal Government shall not enter into any contract with any person to furnish defense material or services to a defense agency, nor shall it permit the sale of such defense material or services to or on behalf of any country, unless the contract requires the contractor to pay into the fund an amount equal to 1 1/4 per centum per year of the value of the contractor's gross revenue on such sales.

(2) Payments pursuant to this section shall be computed in such manner, and paid at such time, as the Council, after consultation with the Comptroller General, shall by regulation prescribe.

(3) In no case shall payments required pursuant to this section be considered as a cost item in the negotiating or bidding of any defense contract, or in determining profit for purposes of this section or any provisions of law relating to the renegotiation of defense contracts.

(4) Amounts paid by a defense contractor pursuant to this section shall be deposited in the fund.

(b) The Secretary of the Treasury shall determine the projected savings in defense spending as a result of cancellation or cutback of a program or contract and shall deposit 10 per centum of the projected savings in the fund.

(d) There is authorized to be appropriated to the fund such amounts as may be necessary to enable the Secretary of the Treasury to make the payments and other disbursements authorized by this Act.

management of the fund

SEC. 503. (a) It shall be the duty of the Secretary of the Treasury to invest such portion of the moneys in the fund as is not, in the judgment of the Secretary, required to meet current withdrawal requirement. Such investments may be made only in interest-bearing obligations of the United States or in obligations guaranteed as to both principal and interest by the United States. For such purpose, such obligations may be acquired (1) on original issue at the issue price, or (2) by purchase of outstanding obligations at the market price. The purposes for which obligations of the United States may be issued under chapter 31 of title 31, United States Code, are hereby extended to authorize the issuance at par of special obligations exclusively to the fund. Such special obligations shall bear interest at a rate equal to the average rate of interest, computed as to the end of the calendar month next preceding the date of such issue, borne by all marketable interest-bearing obligations of the United States then forming part of the public debt; except that where such average rate is not a multiple of one-eighth of 1 per centum, the rate of interest of such special obligations shall be the multiple of one-eighth of 1 per centum next lower than such average rate. Such obligations shall be issued only if the Secretary of the Treasury determines that the purchase of other interest-bearing obligations of the United States, or of obligations guaranteed as to both principal and interest by the United States on original issue or at the market price, is not in the public interest.

(b) Any obligations acquired by the fund (except special obligations issued exclusively to the fund) may be sold by the Secretary of the Treasury at the market price, and such special obligations may be reduced at par plus accrued interest.

(1) inserting `or, in the opinion of the Defense Economic Adjustment Council, a potential relationship to an urgent national requirement in a designated nondefense sector,' in subsection (a) after `function or operation';

(2) inserting `or the Defense Economic Adjustment Council' after `Department of Defense' in paragraph (1) of subsection (a); and

(3) adding at the end of such section the following:

'(g) The Defense Economic Adjustment Council shall define urgent national requirements for nondefense sectors of the economy, and shall include in the designation, any areas so defined by the Congress. Research and development related to energy and fuel efficiency shall be considered a designated area.'.

(b) Section 204 of such Act is amended by inserting `or, in the opinion of the Defense Economic Adjustment Council, a potential relationship to an urgent national requirement in a designated nondefense sector of the economy' after `military function or operation'.

TITLE VII--AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS

appropriations authorized

SEC. 701. There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act.

END

HOW TO GET THIS OR SOMETHING LIKE IT DONE:

Here are resources for advancing the agenda of moving our money from military spending that is harmful in many ways to useful spending that does more good economically, environmentally, democratically, and in terms of foreign relations and security.

A report from the National Priorities Project (PDF[15]) contains on pages 23 and 24 documentation of how investing in military reduces jobs and hurts economy. Get cost of war to your area here[16], but multiply it by five[17]. Get cost of military contracts to your area here[18]. Get the amount of money military companies give your representative here[19]. And here's the cost of weapons you give Israel[20].

October 13, 2010, letter to the catfood commission from 57 congress members: (PDF[65]).

On July 27, 2010, 115[66] congress members behaved as if they might be worthy of keeping their jobs. These include 102 Democrats and 12 Republicans who voted no on dumping $33 billion into escalating the war in Afghanistan, plus one more Democrat, Alan Grayson, who publicly lobbied his colleagues to vote No in an unprecedented manner but was unable to be there to vote. Another 317[66] congress members clearly indicated their worthiness for being unelected, 308 by voting for the money and 9 by not voting. Here is background[67] on how that July 27th vote happened and what it meant. This record can be enriched by looking at previous votes on war-related bills in the chart below[3].

Please phone your Representative at (202) 224-3121 and ask them to commit to voting No on war funding, and post below what they tell you. Thanks!

"Ambassador Richard Holbrooke is scheduled to testify Wednesday before a House Appropriations panel that had deferred action on the administration's $3.9 billion request for aid to Afghanistan next year. And a second House panel is scheduled to meet behind closed doors Tuesday on the Pentagon's budget, including an additional $157.8 billion for war operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. The Afghanistan portion of these funds constitutes about two-thirds of the total, and this money is sure to become more of a target by the time the bill comes to the floor in the fall — and closer to the November elections."